2017–2019: Early career Liv.e began experimenting with DJing in 2014, uploading several
chopped and screwed mixes to
SoundCloud. However, seeking to move away from her family's musical background, After meeting Ben Hixon, president of Dallas-based record label and music collective Dolfin Records, at a jazz show, Liv.e began working with the label and several of its members. She released her debut EP,
Frank, in 2017 under Dolfin. Her EP
Raw Daybreaks, Vol. 1 was recorded in a single night and released later that year; its follow-up, entitled
Raw Daybreaks, Vol. 2 (a collaboration with producer Swarvy) She subsequently opened for Earl Sweatshirt on his Fire It Up! tour, in support of his album
Some Rap Songs. Liv.e also featured on the track 'Mtomb' from his 2019 EP
Feet of Clay.
2020–2022: ''Couldn't Wait to Tell You'' On July 31, 2020, Liv.e released her debut studio album as a solo artist, ''
Couldn't Wait to Tell You'', under the label In Real Life. The album was recorded in Liv.e's bedroom in her mother's house in
St. Louis, Missouri. Liv.e worked in
Urban Outfitters during the writing of the album. The album debuted via livestream on singer Erykah Badu's website as part of her Quarantine Concert Series project. Badu, who attended the same high school as Liv.e over a decade prior, has described Liv.e as 'family since forever' and termed her work 'an extension of what I am creating'. The album received critical acclaim from music journalists, with Liv.e being named 'one to watch' by
The Guardian's Kate Hutchinson. She continued to collaborate with other artists in 2020 and appeared on
Black Noi$e's track "The Band", released in June that year. Liv.e released an EP composed of six leftover songs from ''Couldn't Wait to Tell You,
entitled CWTTY+,
in 2021. CWTTY+'' was named one of the best R&B albums of 2021 by
NPR. Later that year, Liv.e released the single “Bout It”, and embarked on a co-headlining tour with
New York-based rapper
MIKE.
2023–2024: Girl in the Half Pearl and Past Futur.e Ahead of the release of her second studio album,
Girl in the Half Pearl, Liv.e was named one of 25 "New and Rising Artists Shaping the Future of Music in 2023" by
Pitchfork. Preceded by three singles, "Ghost", "Wild Animals" and "Find Out", the album was released in February 2023 to critical acclaim. It was named as one of the best albums of 2023 in year-end lists from publications including
Clash,
Pitchfork and
Slant Magazine.
GITHPRemixEdition, a
remix album of
Girl in the Half Pearl in collaboration with Ben Hixon, was released later in 2023. Liv.e performed at Tyler, the Creator's festival
Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival in November that year. In 2024, Liv.e
surprise released the record
Past Futur.e. Its condensed recording process was inspired by her 2018 EP
Hoopdreams.
2025–present: Gena Liv.e formed Gena, a duo with drummer and producer
Karriem Riggins, and released their debut single, "Circlesz", in November 2025. The name is short for "God Energy, Naturally Amazing". == Influences ==